Inner spring construction for matresses and the like



March 13, 1934. F, BAY R 1,950,770

INNER SPRING CONSTRUCTION FOR MATTRESSES AND THE LIKE I Filed Jan. 3, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet l [ZZZ/872W flfiewffiayer wwvf M. F. BAYER March 13, 1934.

INNER SPRING CONSTRUCTION FOR MATTRESSES AND THE LIKE Filed Jan. 3, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Mar. 13, 1934 U N i 'l' TTES PATENT OFFiQE INNER SPRING CONSTRUCTION FOR MAT- TRESSES AND THE LIKE Matthew F. Bayer, Kenosha, Wis., assignor to Simmons Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of Delaware Application January 3, 1931, Serial No. 506,418

3 Claims.

5 interference between the coils of the adjacent springs; to provide an arrangement in which the spring-separating fabric is not apt to be damaged by being pinched or chafed between coils of adjacent springs; to provide an inner spring 10 construction in which side sway is resisted and maximum stability is obtained; and, in general, it is the object of the invention to provide an improved structure of the class described.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be understood by reference to the following specification and accompanying drawings (two sheets), in which two selected embodiments of the invention are illustrated as applied to an inner spring construction fora mattress.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a plan;

Figure 2 is a side elevation;

Figure 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a plan similar to Figure 1, but illustrating a modified arrangement, and

Figure 5 is a section on the line 5-5 of Figure 4.

Referring now to the drawings, the improved inner spring construction illustrated in Figures 1, 2 and 3 comprises a plurality of rows 6 of coiled wire springs. Each row of springs includes a textile fabric cover or casing 7 which is formed of a strip of suitable material folded longitudinally and provided with a plurality of longitudinally spaced, transversely extending lines of stitching 8 which unite the respective folds of the fabric strip and form independent spring-receiving pockets between the folds.

Coiled springs 10 are inserted in the respective pockets and the free edges of the folds are stitched together, as indicated at 9, to close the pockets.

According to my invention, adjacent pockets in each fabric casing are supplied with oppositely coiled springs; i. e., one pocket is supplied with a right-hand coiled spring and the adjacent pocket is supplied with a left-hand coiled spring. It will be seen that, according to this arrange- 0 ment, alternate pockets will contain left-hand coiled springs, as indicated by L, and the intermediate pockets will contain right-hand coiled springs, as indicated by R.

In assembling the rows of. springs to form the inner spring construction depicted in Figures 1,

2 and 3, the adjacent rows are so arranged that the right-hand springs of one row are disposed in staggered relation to the right-hand springs of the adjacent row, whereby it will be seen that each right-hand spring is positioned between left-hand coiled springs, while the left-hand coiled springs are positioned intermediate righthand coiled springs on all sides.

The rows of springs are connected together by any suitable means to maintain the same in the described relation. In this instance, I have illustrated cord ties, designated 11, which are looped around the adjacent end coils of the adjacent springs as clearly shown in Figure 3, preferably in such a manner that the adjacent portions of the adjacent end coils are overlapped as shown.

The arrangement thus described comprises springs arranged in rows extending in two directions, the springs contained in one fabric container 'I constituting one row, and the transversely aligned springs which are connected by the ties 11 constituting another row. As evident from Figure 2, the pocket arrangement of each of the spring containers is such that the springs are more or less urged into contact with each other substantially in the same manner as the ties ll tend to urge the springs of the transersely extending rows into contact with each other.

When the adjacent coils are wound in opposite directions as above described, the adjacent portions of the said adjacent coils are disposed in substantially parallel relation. For example, by inspection of Figure 3, it will be seen that the portions designated 12 of one of the springs are disposed in substantially parallel relation to the adjacent portions 13 of the adjacent spring 10. When the springs 10 are compressed, the portions 12 and 13 are permitted to overlap or intermesh with each other without contacting or obstructing and sometimes snapping past each other, as often occurs in inner spring constructions wherein all of the springs are coiled in one direction.

The elimination of such contacting or engagement between the adjacent coil portions of adjacent springs serves to eliminate wear or other damage to the casing fabric which is incident to pinching and chafing thereof where the coils engage each other in structures embodying springs all coiled in one direction, and, obviously, quietness of the structure is increased since there are no noises incident to the snapping of one coil portion past another. The above described spring arrangement also results in a somewhat softer structure, in that compression of the various springs is not at any time resisted by engagement of adjacent coil portions in the manner referred to. Anotherimportant advantage resulting from the described arrangement is that oppositely coiled springs tend to stabilize the structure by resisting side sway, the righthand coil springs serving to brace the left-hand coil springs against side sway in one direction in which they are more easily swayed than the other, whiie the left-hand coil springs likewise brace the right-hand coil springs against similar swaying.

In Figures l and 5, the structure is illustrated as being of the type wherein the springs of the adjacent rows are nested, so that the springs in one row are forced apart, i. e., maintained in relatively spaced relation by the springs of the adjacent row. This modified arrangement comprises relatively independent rows 14 of coiled springs, each row being made up substantially in the same manner as described above, except that each row springs contains springs all coiled in one direction. In this arrangement, one row is provided with coiled leithand, as indicated by L, and the row adjacent thereto is provided with springs coiled in the opposite direction, i. e., right-hand, as indicated by R.

When the springs are ne d, as illustrated, it will been seen that the spri gs of one row tend to space the springs of the other row, as indicated at 15, wherefore the uni-directionally coiled springs oi each row do not engage or overlap each other, either when extended or when compressed. It will be seen, however, that the meeting springs of adjacent rows are coiled in opposite directions, and that diagonally extending rows alternate right and left hand springs are, in effect, formed. By inspection of Figure 5, it will be clearly apparent that the adjacent coil portions of adjacent springs, i. e., of contacting springs, are disposed substantially parallel to each other, so that the coil portions are permitted to overlap and intermesh with each other, substantially in the same manner as explained in connection with Figure 3.

The nested row of springs 14 may be tied together in any suitable manner; for instance, by means of cord ties designated 16. Obviously, other means may be utilized for securing the respective rows in the described juxtaposition and the springs may be maintained juxtaposed in rows by any suitable means other than the fabric envelope structure described.

It will be observed that in both of the above described forms of construction, the arrangement is such that there is provided, in efiect, intersecting rows of springs wherein a spring is located in the intersection of the rows and is common to both rows and wherein the respective springs of said rows adjacent said common spring and the latter are wound in opposite directions.

I am aware that other changes may be made in the described construction and arrangement without departing from the spirit of my invention, the scope of which should be determined by reference to the following claims, the same being construed as broadly as possible consistent with the state of the art.

I claim as my invention:

1. An inner spring construction for mattresses and the like, comprising a plurality of axially vertical, coiled wire springs arranged side by side in a row, and means for preventing metal-tometal contact between adjacent springs, said adjacent springs being respectively coiled in opposits directions, whereby adjacent coil portions of said adjacent springs are disposed in substantially parallel relationship, thereby permitting intermeshing of said adjacent coil portions.

2. An inner s ring construction for mattresses and the like, comprising a plurality of juxtaposed, axially vertical, coiled Wire springs arranged in a row, textile fabric means for maintaining the springs in position and tending to maintain adjacent springs in meeting relation with each other, portions of said fabric means bei g interposed between the adjacent springs for preventing metal-to-metal contact therebetween, said adjacent springs being respectively coiled in opposite directions, whereby adjacent coil portions of said adjacent springs are disposed in substantially parallel relationship, thereby permitting intermeshing of said spring portions as an incident to compression of one of said springs.

3. An inner spring construction for tresses and the like, comprising a plurality of axially vertical coiled springs disposed in nested arrangement, the contacting springs being res ectively wound in opposite directions so as to provide adjacent, substantially parallel spring portions permitting intermeshing thereof.

MATTHEW F. BAYER.

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